Taiwan’s Health Promotion Administration (HPA) has reminded suppliers and consumers that it has not approved any e-cigarettes or heated-tobacco products (HTPs), reports Taipei Times.
The warning came after security footage showed a lawmaker using an HTP in the legislature’s corridors.
Novel tobacco and nicotine products require government approval in Taiwan. To date, the HPA has received applications for authorization for HTPs from 12 companies. It has rejected the applications of eight while two of the remaining four have been asked to furnish additional information.
The HPA has a panel of toxicology, public health and addiction experts to assess requests for authorized use of HTPs. The panel has so far convened 30 meetings.
Taiwanese law punishes the manufacture, import, sale, supply, display or advertisement of unauthorized novel tobacco products by a maximum penalty of TWD5 million ($152,263) while users may be fined TWD10,000.